Jump to the New Era
by Nukey
Summary: Jacob had a son. His name was Angelus, and like his father became a famous Admiral. Earth is saved, and the covenant defeated. its time for humanity to expand beyond the area of earth. With a new jump drive, what will happen?
1. Chapter 1,  Unexpected Visitor

_Serenity, 0952, Above Planet Earth_

_Mission: Test of Hyper-Jump technology_

_Status: Awaiting go for jump_

"Cortana!" Lieutenant Keyes shouted from his rack. The AI hologram shimmered into him view. The code whizzing up and down was faster than usual. She was either angry or busy.

"What?!" She asked, her hologram holding her hips "_I'm trying_ to configure out security with the OSC on our backs!" She huffed and the code slowed down "Sorry lieutenant, bad day. What was it you wanted?"

"Get me the file on Captain Jacob Keyes" He picked up his data pad

"Your father?" Cortana asked

"Yeah… my father" the captain responded. Cortana entered the encrypted security code she stole of Admiral Shier and used it to gain access to the personnel database. Under 'Deceased' she looked up the name and took the file. After sealing her virtual back door into the system, she then took the chance to upload it to her own data banks, before handing it to the captain himself.

"Thank you Cortana." He replied

"Well that's a first, something polite!" She quickly shut down her hologram and resumed building the security mainframe, just managing to hear another threat leave the lieutenant's eager mouth.

-----------------

A knock at the lieutenant's door sharply snapped Keyes out of a light sleep. He stared at the door searching for a missing link in his brain, before someone called him.

"Lieutenant? Lieutenant Keyes?" The man rapped the door again. Keyes stood up and looked through the peephole. A private was standing there holding a data pad, also trying to look through the peephole. He was very agitated and had a concerned look on his face. Keyes opened the door, and waited for the man to salute. "Sir! This has just arrived." He showed a package he was holding behind his back "It's from the academy sir" Keyes read the label and sure enough it was from earth's space training corp. Keyes returned the salute and both the men dropped their arms. "I have been told to keep by your side and return to the comms post with info on this package. The admiral asked me to keep it hush sir."

"Very well, private." He walked away from the door, the man still standing at ease in the corridor

"You _can_ come in you know" Cortana told the private. He entered cautiously. Lieutenant Keyes had torn the side off the package, and was about to tip out the contents.

"Can Cortana see this?" Keyes asked

"No other man can, Sir!" the private responded

"Do I look like a man?" Cortana replied

"Zip it Cortana. Recheck the security firewalls." Cortana's hologram stared, then angrily showed her tongue at the lieutenant before giving in and returning to work.

Keyes opened the package and spread the items over his desk. There were 2 letters, one a copy and a small black silk box. Keyes reached for his heart and felt it miss a beat. The private glanced at the documents too. He waited there a moment before jumping back and standing as straight as possible, bringing up a more than perfect salute.

"Congratulations, _Admiral_!"

Keyes eyed the gleaming blue-platinum epilates.

"Put them on lieutenant! I mean Admiral!" Cortana said sarcastically, her hologram looking at a wall

"Cortana! What the _hell_ did I just tell you?"

"To check the firewalls sir!" She turned around and smiled at the newborn Admiral. "I'm glad you did, because there was a massive gap which could have allowed someone to access all confidential files. I managed to recode a new firewall, all in about two point three-six seconds!" There was silence "Oh, sorry, that is if you don't count the last second I didn't use to look at a few of the confidential files I didn't see, but you didn't hear that." Keyes looked at Cortana with disgust

"Sir!" The private said, ignoring Cortana completely, "Does it say why you were promoted more than 7 ranks?" the private licked his lips "Nothing like this has ever occurred in military history!"

"If I may?" Cortana announced "Well, it's simple. One of the files I didn't look at told me nothing at all to do with this explanation!"

"Quit with the double negatives Cortana!" Keyes shouted

"Yes sir!" Cortana's code increased its pace through her body. "The captain of this ship was to be promoted to admiral, as you may have heard already. However, recent investigations revealed that… hold on, just got to give a docking permission." Her hologram flickered. "Ok, where was I. Oh, yes. Recent investigations into the person of Captain Morse have discovered a breakthrough. He was the one who murdered Admiral Linskey!" Cortana put her hands on her hips "What would you do without me, eh?"

"Cortana, this is nonsense. Why would he want to kill Linskey?" Keys asked

"Err, so he could become Admiral? And if he was admiral, he could to whatever he wanted with this ship! And if he could do whatever he wanted with this ship… well you get the picture. _You_ were only chosen for admiral a few days ago because there was a shortage, and an admiral was needed for this voyage! you were chosen because of your military history and your rank, which is beyond all others. I don't know how they worked that out." Cortana's code stopped and started several times. "Hold on, there is some disturbance. My sensors are thinking that the jump reactor has onlined. Let me just fix that." Cortana's hologram disappeared.

"Sir? Should I have heard that? That kind of information would be for lieutenants and above!" The private looked into Keyes' eyes. Keyes took his sidearm in the left hand and took the old epilates in his right. "Sir? What are you doing?" Keyes raised the gun. "Sir? Please!" The private winced and heard a shot crack through the air. He waited for the pain to come. It never did. He opened his eyes and looked at his body.

"I'm Scaring the shit out of you," Keyes said. He dropped the epilates in front of the private. "Put these on, lieutenant!" the private was about to correct him with instinct when his mind suddenly realised what he was going on about.

"Sir?" the private asked, wanting confirmation

"I said put those on lieutenant!" Keyes looked into the eyes of the man standing in front of him. "If I'm an admiral, then you're a lieutenant! And if you tell anyone about what Cortana just said, the next bullet will be inside your skull!"

"Oh, lovely. Just like the end of a movie!" Cortana interrupted. Both men looked at her hologram "Sorry, did I break the ice? Well, someone has broken into the engine room computer system and activated the Jump drive. Fancy getting on it? Oh, the bridge crew are dead. The captain saw our arrivals and activated his own personal funeral cremation. This also seemed to trigger the instant jump drive." The two men stared at her "Well, are you going to do anything?

"Cortana! Have you ever heard of sensitivity or even order of importance? And why the hell didn't you tell us a few minutes ago?

"Because you were asking him your bloody hand in marriage!" Cortana said "_That's _what I call sensitive!" The new lieutenant stared at Keyes.

"What do we do sir?" He asked him

"First, we disable the IJD, then we-" Keyes was cut off by Cortana

"Ah… forgot to mention that, the IJD countdown can't be stopped. The captain used the override code. If I may, I suggest you recreate a new bridge crew, get in position, and wait and see what happens!"

"Your missing something Cortana, and you know bloody well what it is!"

"That we are going into an unknown region of space and we cannot return back? Or that you have 5 minutes to decide your crew and get into position?" Cortana replied

"Cortana!" Keyes shouted "God I wish your 'Mother' was here"

"Who, Doctor Halsey or my predecessor AI?" Keyes ignored her and ran out of the room, the lieutenant staying close behind him.

Hopefully to be continued


	2. Chapter 2, Five Minute Countdown

_Serenity, 1136, Above Planet Earth_

_Mission: Test of Hyper-Jump technology_

_Status: Critical – IJD sabotage. Jump at 1140._

Admiral Keyes and Lieutenant Thawson ran through the narrow quarters of the living section, dodging past a few people and trying to make as much progress as possible. Cortana appeared at regular hologram posts in front of them to tell them key information about the status of the engines, position of their heading, and new reports from other support vessels, as well as telling everyone ahead to clear the way. Many people stared at Admiral Keyes, looking for the two epilates with the lieutenant badge on them, only to see the glimmering platinum blue stripes.

"So, do you have a ploy for finding new nut heads for the bridge crew?" Cortana asked as they ran past another hologram station.

"Yes, I do. I want you to open a link for the whole ship." Cortana disappeared for a bit.

"The comms are yours, Try not to insult anyone!" Keyes stopped at Cortana and lent against the projector.

"This is Keyes," He announced "Admiral Keyes." Everyone who was in visual range stopped what they were doing and eyed him "Questions later. This message applies for the whole crew as priority one. I want evasive navigational routes through the zeta asteroid field; I want estimation reports on the condition of the engine structure after we receive breeches through decks D15 to E17, and lastly, defensive strategy schemes for an attack in the nebula asteroid field beta from a full flanking enemy position. Any crew member can grab your data pad and work one of these out now, which ever suites your skills. Send your results to Cortana, and she will have them processed. Keyes out" he tapped a button on the control panel.

"I will what?" Cortana asked "Hell no, you can shove it right up your-"

"Cortana! Please! I want you to do this for me, for once! I would do it myself if I could work them all out in 30 seconds, but I'm human. I need you on this one!" He sighed and broke eye contact. "Once you have the winners, report them to the bridge." There was a small pause before Cortana responded, processing the situation to come out with the right response

"Yes, sir!" Cortana attempted a salute and shimmered away.

"Lieutenant, come with me." Keyes led the lieutenant towards the bridge. "What's your name and position aboard this ship, marine?" He asked

"The name's Tom, Tom Thawson. I'm in gunnery, sir." he replied "I keep the guns firing on C deck."

"How much do you know about your guns lieutenant?"

"Too much for my own good sir!" a grin formed on his face "I sometimes think I know better than the others." He bounced a pace to keep up with the Admiral "May I ask why you wanted to know, sir?"

"You sound confident in your work." Keyes replied

"That's because I know what I'm doing sir!"

"I need a weapons specialist on the bridge. Do you think you can handle that?" Keyes asked. The new lieutenant replied without hesitation

"Yes sir, definitely. I've seen how it's done." He tried to think of more words to say, But Keyes cut him off

"In that case I'm transferring you from Army lieutenant to Navy bridge crew, sub lieutenant. Not quite as good a name, but it's the same rank, and it might not be permanent. Go get your gear and chuck them in an empty rack. Meet me on the bridge 1 minute before jump. Step to it!" Thawson stood a quick attention and saluted before he ran off back the way they had come.

"The work has been marked. Petty officer Trace submitted an outstanding navigational course, nearly as well as mine. It had been quad checked and arrived first!" She looked at the admiral "Are you handling this okay, Angelus?" Keyes sighed and stopped, his left hand came up to rub his eyes. "If you want, I can-"

"I'm fine." He sighed once again "Tell me more about Trace, is he known well?" he looked at Cortana, his hand sifting through his short hair.

"For a start, he's a she, and secondly yeah, she is quite a genius from the academy. She's down in logistics. Want me to bring her to the bridge?"

"Yes please Cortana, if you could select the rest as well, that would be great. Send me their reports to the bridge's database. I'm heading that way now." He started to walk off when Cortana asked for his attention.

"Sir? If you need someone to talk to, I'm always here." She said suddenly, her hands swinging by her sides. Her code had totally stopped; she had put all her CPU into just saying those few words. Keyes looked at her.

"That would be great, Cortana, thanks" He smiled at her before looking at his feet "We've got a lot to do, so on the double if you wouldn't mind?" He looked at Cortana

"Anything for you, Admiral. You know that." She shimmered away again, and left Keyes by himself, before he turned and made his way to the bridge.

_Serenity, 1138_

_Logistics_

_Dorm of Petty officer Jane Trace_

"You in here Jane?" Cortana asked. Jane jumped and hit her head on the rack's railing.

"Ugh! Cortana!" She turned to look at Cortana, who was holding her hand over her gawping mouth.

"Are you alright?" Cortana asked

"Yeah. No thanks to you."

"I was being sarcastic!" Cortana's face twisted and she showed her blue tongue

"You're a great pal." She rubbed the back of her head. "What do you want?"

"Your position on the bridge is waiting. Hurry up. Wouldn't want to get into trouble for being late would you?" Cortana turned around and inspected the rest of the room. She glanced at a set of pictures; one was a hansom young man. "He taken?" she pointed at him and turned back to look at Jane, who was staring furiously at her. "Okay, Okay!" She held her hands up "I'll find someone else!"

"Why didn't you tell me sooner Cortana!" she ran to her desk and put her stuff in a bag, including all the photos.

"Well, I only just realised he existed!" She replied

"Not him!" Jane shouted she let out a heavy sigh before swinging her bag over he shoulder and running out of the room.

_Serenity 1138_

_Engine room, Pillar of autumn_

_Engine Status Panels – Lieutenant Sam Towers' Post_

"Turn Valves 6 to 8, reverse hydrogen flow!" a man shouted. He watched his colleagues run around the room, beneath the one of the massive new triple engine drives. He turned to look at the jump status. 72. "Only a couple of minutes to go now." He whispered under his breath

"Actually, one minute and twenty four seconds!" Cortana corrected him. The man turned

"Hello Cortana, what brings you here?" He asked

"Hello Sam. Your predictions for damage control were excellent, the best entry from the ship. The Admiral wants you in the bridge ASAP." Sam smiled at Cortana.

"What were with those questions for anyway?" He asked "And how the hell did Keyes get _Admiral_?" Cortana put here finger to her lips.

"All questions answered later, Keyes will brief you after the jump, if we make it." Cortana clicked her fingers in front of Sam's face. "Now step to it!" she said, before disappearing, startling Sam in the process.

"Yes ma'am!" Sam shouted at the wall, just as a private walked around the corner

"Who are you talking to, Sam?" he asked, puzzled "Your wife here or summit?" he looked around the area, searching for someone.

"No, Cortana popped in. I've got to go, triple time." He grabbed his pack and ran onto the raised walkway, heading out of the engine room.

_Serenity, 1139_

_Boarding crew decks_

_Dorm of Private Steven Truss_

"Hey there!" Cortana said at a man, lying curled up on his rack "Are you Steve?" Steve rolled over and looked at Cortana

"No, get lost." He angrily shouted at Cortana, before turning back.

"Ok" Cortana frowned at him "Oh, but if you do see Steve, tell him a promotion is waiting for him at the bridge will you?" Cortana Disappeared

"Wait! I am Steve!" He shouted, jumping up from his bed, "Cortana!?" He looked around and sighed. Cortana shimmered back into view

"I knew you were lying. Your increased blood pressure and low voice indicated that you did not want to be disturbed." She folded her arms and stood taller on her platform. "I though that trick would get you up!"

"Show off." Steve replied "What did you say about promotion?" he looked as deep as he could into Cortana's eyes.

"Your defensive strategy schemes were outrageous. You know the limits of this ship and you used them." She looked at him "Be on the bridge in one minute. The Admiral is waiting." For the last time, she shimmered away.

_Serenity_

_The Bridge_

Angelus looked at the three reports on the computer, scanning them as thoroughly as possible, trying to get to know the people before they arrived. He changed from report to report, and then checked what they submitted. He particularly liked Private Truss's report. Very deep and reliable.

"Are you happy with our . . . contestants?" Cortana asked, looking at the jump countdown as she spoke. Keyes paused before answering

"They will be suitable for the job." He announced

"Yes, I agree." She changed a few security setting and recalibrated the command modules. "I also like the fact they all have T's as the first letters of their surnames." She added. Angelus quickly switched between the three reports and a smile formed on his face "What?" she asked

"My father's first command crew all had S's" Cortana looked surprised.

"The odds of that happening are just over 1 to 150 million!" She replied, feeling clever for herself

"Shame it wasn't for the lottery." Angelus responded. The door opened and 4 men ran though to the Admiral, stood to attention and saluted. Keyes inspected them, before returning their salute.

"To get to the point, you are all now members of the bridge: Petty commanders. The questions I asked were to find people who could tackle such tasks as which we might find on the other side of this jump, but I didn't have the time for a proper crew inspection. Your positions are as followed. Jane, you take up Navigation. Sam, you're on Damage Control, Steve take up Tactical Control and Tom, you're on gunnery." He took a breath "Any questions will be answered after jump. You all know what to do, am I correct?"

"Yes, Sir!" they replied in unison.

"Good, now get to your posts!" They all broke their stance and scattered to different parts of the bridge "Cortana, issue full alert throughout the ship." He turned to face out the windows. "Battle stations, prepare to jump!"


	3. Chapter 3, New encounter

_Bridge, 1140,_

_Status: Battlestations, Alert 1_

Cortana was desperately trying to calculate their exit point, to give some tactical information of the area. No-one had yet _cut_ through sub-space which made the calculations near impossible. She decided to let her sub systems handle with future courses and returned her hologram post on the bridge

"Any luck Cortana?" Keyes asked

"Negative. There are just too many variables to cut past. I can't even create any formulae!" Cortana was now looking worried. For once in her computer life, she was unable to prepare, and she didn't like it. Instead, she tried to re-configure the inner grids and re-align the plating to get the best deflection throughout the ship.

"Cortana, please try and relax. This is the sixth time you have re-configured the ship's systems." Keyes looked at the console. 40 seconds to jump.

"I haven't got the software for relaxation, upload it any time you want!" she shimmered away silently.

"Give me an armour status report, Sam!" Keyes turned to face him "What has Cortana done this time?" Sam typed in commands on his console

"She has realigned refractive plating on decks B through F 6.35° uplift, and run system checks on blast door emergency locking, sir. I guess she really wants us to live!"

"But not to move, Lieutenant, how much power do we loose in our engines from that uplift?" there was a seemingly infinite pause, while the calculations were input.

"13 sir."

"Cortana!" He shouted. Cortana reappeared on her holopanel.

"If you want to know, we have a 84 chance to loose all power from the jump. I realigned the plating to we have something to give us more time to reboot." Cortana looked very tense. Her code was running faster than Keyes had ever seen.

"Good Cortana. Let me know next time please!" Keyes went back to the mainframe computer, and checked the time: twelve seconds

"Cortana, initiate ship-scale countdown at ten!" Cortana stood through and closer her eyes for a brief moment

"Done." She looked across the bridge, feeling once again helpless. She tried to think of more equations to do to help, but there was nothing. Her sub-routine started a countdown in the background, and the bridge crew had stopped everything they were doing, looking at Keyes, who himself stared out of the bridge window, watching what was about to happen

"Cortana, what are the chances of jumping into a death zone?" Keyes asked

"I thought you didn't like the grim stuff sir, but I calculated a one in a billion chance of jumping on top of a sun corona, and a one in two-hundred and six chance of landing in a deadly area, like a red-field nebula. However, the co-ordinates set could be sabotage sir, meaning the chances are much lower." Cortana sighed seeing no change in the Admiral's face. "Sir, calculating this is like throwing a pin from space, and hitting an ant. However, this would be impossible as the pin would burn in the stratos-"

"That's quite enough dread for one day. Let us just try to enjoy the ride."

The countdown reached zero, and the ship's lighting flickered. Keyes's eyes didn't move, as he stayed focused on watching out of the main view-screen. From the space around, the ship just seemed to instantly vanish, creating a back draw of particles from the upper atmosphere of the planet before sending them violently back outwards as a large EM pulse.

Cortana looked down at her portal as she concentrated, expecting something to happen, but the only change in coding she could detect was a small change in the pressure readings as the whole crew held their breath in anticipation.

Suddenly, the ship shuddered brutally causing anyone standing up to say a good hello as they kissed the floor. Cortana scanned the local area around the ship, and detected millions of large thermally dead objects, many with high kinetic speeds: Asteroids.

"Admiral, we've jumped into an asteroid field!" Cortana shouted. The ship rocked again as the rocks pounded on the metal outer hull of the ship. A blast was heard from the bridge, which seemed to come from above them

"Damage report!" Keyes asked, expecting the worst. "I want to know what that was!"

"It wasn't us, sir!" Cortana reported, "That blast was external!" Another blast rang out through the ship, causing the ship to shudder

"Focus a camera on those blast positions." He looked at the main screen behind him and was shocked to see the asteroids were glowing orange. As the camera arced around, the clear patterns of a fleet of space craft presented itself, through a translucent gas field, with the occasional flicker of light being fired from each of the different craft opened fire, each housing a different type of weaponry. Cortana quickly analysed the ships, from the usage of her digital zooming software, to process and enhance the images. Three fully visible ships that were in battle were taken and enlarged onto the screen behind the Admiral. He looked at the designs thoroughly, although none of them matched anything he'd seen.

The biggest ship was bulky sleek and elegant. It was long and had a larger section at the rear connected by a longer thin mid-section with a large bow shape on the front. Its engines were located in the rear which was seen to be the only similarity to human ships. The hull was visibly metallic and it was painted a dark golden colour. Its weapons seemed to be lasers which streaked from the join between the front and midsection from several turrets.

The second two ships were much smaller and were a dark green and turquoise colour and had an almost stereotypical alien appearance. They were almost like covenant ships but their weaponry differed from their plasma technology. Each volley appeared to be similar to the round of a MAC cannon, but of a much smaller payload. They both seemed to be the same ship class and were about three times smaller than their hostile ship. They were rounded and seemed very bloated in appearance and had smaller craft launching from them to attack the enemy.

"They are definitely not ours, sir." Cortana replied, "I've cross checked them with every possible ship design, concept and prototype that was submitted to any databank and have found no matches. Perhaps they are pirates?" The Admiral had considered this and replied straight away.

"They are not pirates Cortana. Pirates loot their ships from our military or from other convoys. Even if they were, why would they be fighting each other and why this far away from home?" Cortana had to admit that all these odd features just didn't add up and that left only one logical explanation left.

"That leaves only one option in my opinion; another alien race." Angelus looked at Cortana and nodded. Another blast ripped through the matter of the asteroid field as if it was in an atmosphere and the crew looked at their nearest view screen to see two massive blue explosions as the two green craft exploded.

"Let's try to make contact." Angelus announced

"Are you sure you want to be killed so early?"

"What makes you think that Cortana?" She crossed her arms and looked at the two explosions on the view screen.

"I just don't like it when you think up ideas that I can usually prove wrong and then you get all smart arse when you ideas end up working." She looked at the remaining ship slowly turning away. "I predict that it will leave the area in two minutes. The engines are very similar to ours and they appear to be charging."

"Open all frequencies" Angelus taps the shoulder of Steve and whispers into his ear

"Prepare an evasive action plan, just in case things get hairy."

"Channels up sir." Cortana announced before setting a subroutine to monitor the sudden movements of Steve's fingers.

"This is the _Serenity _calling unknown ship, please respond." The admiral watched as he saw the ship in the view screen slow down to a halt.

"I repeat, this is the _Serenity_ calling the unknown ship in close proximity." Angelus looks at Cortana and she shrugs.

"This is the _Relentless _calling the ship claiming to be the _Serenity._ What is your request?" Cortana looks at Keyes, her mouth wide open

"They speak _English_?" She whispers loudly. The admiral is also stunned and calls for a damage report on his desk before re-opening the channel.

"We are heading towards your position. We request a moor with your ship." Keyes nodded at Cortana and she increased the power flow of the engines and moved the ship towards the new found English aliens.

"Hold your position!" The _Relentless _Started to swing around at broadside and its weapons were glowing brightly. "What is this? Identify yourselves. What faction are you from?" Cortana instantly cut the engines, not wanting a conflict this early on. Keyes was looking around trying to think of a way to phrase his next sentence.

"This is_Serenity_. We are in desperate need to communicate with you in better terms. Please allow us to moor with you!" One of the glowing guns fired and a bolt of super intense light slammed into an asteroid next to the ship which exploded violently and splashed the hull of the ship with thousands of asteroid pellets.

"Bloody hell!" Truss shouted. Cortana looked at Keyes who was struggling to find anything else to say.

"Let me handle this." Cortana said. She hacked her way into the communications mainframe and cut off any access codes so she would be uninterrupted.

"What in hells name are you doing? This is the AI of the _Serenity_ and we are as good as unarmed. Our weapons systems are offline and if your sensors are good enough to hit that asteroid and somehow not realise that we are helpless here, then I'm a bloody space junkie!" She looked across the room and saw everyone staring at her. The communications channel remained silent

"All we request is to dock with your ship and have a chat! You know a little one to one to get to know each other better. That's what two unfamiliar alien races _usually_ do when they first make contact, not shoot each other!" The other ship was still in its same position, all guns still charged and aiming at the _Serenity_. A couple of seconds passed during which the bridge crew shared looks around each other.

"This is the _Relentless_. We apologise for our actions and we inform you that it is a time of war for our race. Can you repeat, did you say 'alien race'?" Keyes was knocked back into a good condition and replied.

"Yes, we did. This is Admiral Angelus Keyes and we are still waiting for our permission to moor." There was another pause of communications between the two ships before the aliens responded once more.

"You can speak our language?" The Relentless replied


	4. Chapter 4, The Serenity

-- D A T A F E E D - A L P H A – T W O --

/ . . /openrecord12FA5 – Securityrequested

. . . Sec3: /

. . . Sec3 accepted

. . .

/ application launching

. . .

/ -data feed-alpha-two successfully opened

-- D A T A F E E D - A L P H A – T W O --

--H A L C Y O N C L A S S I I - E X P E R I M E N T A L --

**-- **_**S E R E N I T Y **_**--**

Admiral Linskey,

Our latest project which has been under Cpt. Fortner's supervision has almost finished completion, and the prototype jump drive is fully installed and reaching its optimum energy levels. Our scientists believe that it should be working on the due date, however, the ship itself requires more funding for it's already over-zealous load out. This should be achieved through extra funding from the OSC, however I would rather you personally oversee the transaction.

The ship is already four times more expensive than the Requiem fleet command cruiser and its equipment is beyond that of our military technology, most of it still research and prototype. However, as this ship is going to be flying by itself, we have added all the specifications your military desires wished for. Below is the list of features.

Weaponry:

Its main weapon, the first prototype, is more suitable on a destroyer rather than a 'scout' ship, but the demand for the highest possible armament lead to this weapon to be produced. It is the biggest MAC cannon we have ever hosted on a ship, and it is capable of amazing devastation. We have not yet tested it on the ground, for fearful reasons. The weapon itself fires a three round burst in quick succession, like the one on the _Pillar of Autumn_, except the rounds are the same size as the ones used in super-cruisers. This was a massive achievement for our engineers. However the cannon can fire any size round below due to its fluctuating magnetic field. The downside is the power usage; this is taken into views later. The main rounds include the current 'slug' round which is most popular or a new experimental 'plasma' type round, created from covenant tech. This round will impact with the object and explode, not in a mass of heat, but as a kinetic crush, creating a massive energy explosion in a very small area – perfect of hull penetration or shield depletion.

The Sixty-eight 65mm Autocannons are more than enough protection from any possible remaining covenant, or even for point defence in an asteroid field. They are positioned evenly over the ship, with research going into the best positional arcs for the weapons. These fire either depleted-uranium rounds or solid slugs, both of which can be produced on its on-board armament workshop from asteroids or metallic substances.

The sacrifice in this ship was removing the archer missile pods. They could not be mounted as the ship required so much extra room as an exploration craft. However, sixteen launch tubes have been fitted with a new 45 metre-long torpedo, dubbed the 'Titan-Torp'. Its takes technology from the 'Nova' nuclear device and implements a smaller version into the warhead of the missile to create a concentrated 180 megaton blast in a smaller area, by causing the chain reaction of the blast to be smaller, reducing the chance of a friendly attack. . The fuel is nuclear and so there is more room for payload and its own advanced tracking system, capable of making the missile survive passing through an asteroid field with safety and still maintaining an optimum course to the target. Because there is so much more room in these behemoths, they have been fitted with a type of cloaking device. The first part neutralizes radar frequencies and the second is a small 'warp' drive. It does not have the power to make even a particle fly though warp, but it creates a small dip in the normal space curve, hiding it from light and making it appear to have no mass.

Defensive systems

The _Serenity_ has taken technology from current stealth ships, however, due to the design of its shape and its huge mass, only a limited amount could be done in terms of stealth. Exterior photogenic panels will hide the ship from the casual eye in terms of invisibility and large shutters on the rear engines will hide the obvious engine trail. This means that the engines cannot be above 15 to avoid melting these shutters.

There are radar jammers and amplifiers, as well as anti-electronic warfare subsystems to deal with the threats of electromagnetic nebula and perhaps solar flare storms.

The main feature of this ship here is a special type of shield, but not appearing as a physical layer between harms way and the hull. Elements of magnificent magnetic properties have been infused with the plasma in the engine cores to create a large magnetic field around the ship which can be controlled by eight field stabilizers around the internal hull at specific points. This means that it can deplete a shield in one area, and concentrate it in another area, or just leave it surrounding the ship to ward off any radioactive particles which could cause damage. It can be extended as a cost of strength and vice versa. One thing it cannot do, however, it to turn it off completely - it will require the field to either narrow to a point or extend to a far away distance. This will provide limited protection in asteroid fields due to its strictly magnetic quality.

The armour is a type of isotope bonded titanium structure, created specifically for this task and taking a warehouse of a laboratory to make stable and to create its delightful properties. Active systems allow the external panels to be angled and tilted to provide the best possible point of protection, and the triple layered bulkhead filled with thermo-reactive polymers means that a hull breach will be immediately filled and plugged.

Power

The power was taken from the covenant storage technology, and enhanced with human recharging capabilities. The engines are directly linked to this power source and the molecules are constantly reacting at very close to 100, making it the most efficient we have created. At a constant 100 power to drive, the ship can fly without refueling for decades. The cooled plasma state means there is less risk of overheating, and a faster power output.

Extras

This has the same hangar and fighter capabilities, including modified pelicans and several full squadrons of both longsword and the new broadsword craft. Space has been acquired from ground assault areas, halving the number of tank and vehicle storages. To be used for other sub-systems.

Further information can be found from the archive that is attached, and it constantly updated though our network link.

I hope she meets your wishes, as she certainly looks up to the job

Syd Davies Head researcher + development engineer


	5. Chapter 5, Nowhere to run

Unknown position, 1216

_Unknown position, 1216_

_Serenity requesting boarding permission_

_Permission granted_

The _Relentless_ was bigger than it had looked from the monitors, in fact it was as large as the _Serenity_ itself, at just over one kilometre long. It wasn't as bulky but it looked very menacing, especially after demonstrating its weapon technology. The marine guard force was en route to the breach hatch, and Angelus was preparing his computer for automatic takeover to give Cortana emergency powers if everything went wrong. He lifted his sidearm off his unused seat and slid a first round into the chamber. He wondered how this new alien race appeared to be human from thermal imaging and probing, or at least bipedal forms.

"Good luck, Admiral. Mind if I take a look around?" Cortana asked

"Around where?" He replied. Cortana looked across to the closing _Relentless_ and tapped her foot impatiently. "No, not just yet; keep an eye on radar instead for contacts. Remember we have just witnessed a military confrontation."

"Aye, Sir." She replied, and disappeared. Angelus holstered his weapon and briskly walked around the bridge and out of the rear exit.

The _Relentless_ came align with the _Serenity_ and moved closer to it, a small tube extending towards the hatch on the _Serenity_. Both ships stayed stationary as the tube attached itself to the hatch and pressurised internally. A voice appeared from the door control panel as Cortana re-routed it from the main comms unit.

"This is Scyther, Captain of the _Relentless_. We are armed, and assume you are too. We are ready for your hatch to open. Do so when ready." The message cut into a figure of Cortana.

"Ready Admiral?" She asked. Angelus looked at the hatch in front of him for a few seconds, shifting from foot to foot.

"Open the hatch." He ordered. A marine closest to the door entered the access code and the door slowly opened, the outside hatch opening in synchronisation. The marines tightened their grips on their weapons, and adjusted their footing, trying to keep as much cover, and maintain as much view as possible. Through the half opened door, a tunnel was slowly rocking from side to side, and on the other side stood several figures in a similar situation as the marines were in now. Both held their fire and a silence started as the hatch stopped opening.

"Welcome to the _Relentless_" The Captain started "The Amarrian Armageddon class, Tier 1 Battleship." The figure at the end of the corridor called. His marine force started to walk forwards, and Angelus ushered his many to follow suit.

"And welcome to the Azuris Quadrant of space, locally known as Y-2NAO – The furthest point in the explored outer territory."

Keyes quietly coughed into his hand and replied

"And may I welcome you to the _Serenity_, an advanced experimental prototype Halcyon MKII UNSC Cruiser, representing the pride of Earth, our home planet."

The 'alien' Captain stopped dead in his tracks and tilted his head slightly.

"'Earth'?" He looked at angelus. "Did you just say Earth?"

Angelus slowed his pace and tried to predict the Captains sudden expression

"Yes, I did. Why? Does this mean anything to you?" Both parties stopped about four metres from one another, halfway down the temporary tunnel. There was silence as the Captains eyes pierced through Angelus. Suddenly, Cortana's voice was heard, and a red flashing light was shining from the _Serenity's_ access hatch.

"Sir, I've just detected six unknown contacts. Sorry to ruin the party, But they are taking aggressive formations and have targeted both of these ships. We need you on the bridge."

The captain glared at the flashing red lights in front of him before hearing his own warning signal through the earpiece he was carrying. Both parties doubled back and ran for their own ships.

"Close the Hatch!" Angelus Shouted. He ducked under the lowering hatch and looked underneath through the tunnel. All of their men were aboard and its own hatch was closing.

"Cortana, get us moving!" The hatchway tunnel pulled itself off the _Serenity's_ hull and retracted quickly towards the golden Armageddon. Both ships started moving forwards, and started arcing towards the incoming threats.

Angelus ran onto the bridge sweating from the short run.

"Status report!" He shouted. "What are they?"

"They are similar to the ones that the Relentless was battling before, only their designs are much bigger." A comms network established from the _Relentless_.

"We have not any time to warp. We have no choice but to engage. We cannot take all of these by ourselves. We request your assistance, _Serenity_. You will become a strong ally of the Amarrian Empire." Angelus through about these relations quickly, and wondered if making such an early decision could effect the lives of his men in the future. At the moment it seemed he had no choice.

"They are 150 klicks and closing fast. I count a single large cruiser-sized ship, two destroyer sized craft, the same ones we saw launching those fighters and three prowler sized interceptors." Cortana notified the bridge. Angelus touched the wall panel with his fingers to activate the comms.

"_Relentless,_ I will accept your agreement for the time being. We will help you to engage your enemy." He turned off the comms and stood with both hands clutching the railing in front of the main monitor screen.

"Let's test this thing out!" Cortana shouted, her code suddenly increasing massively in speed up and down her body, her eyes shut and her body floated above the platform – her image of herself during a battle scene.

"Sir, Cortana is actively adjusting the armour plating, and showing me limitation boundaries. She. . . she has sent a single mag field towards the hostile command ship sir." Sam said. "The three interceptor craft are heading towards the Relentless. What is your plan of action sir?"

"What's the status of the MAC cannon?" Angelus asked.

"All weapons systems are online and fully charged sir!" Tom replied. "MAC cannon is awaiting load out."

"Load single plasma, double slug, max calibre" Angelus replied. "Target the largest of the lot."

A plasma shell loaded into the MAC cannon, and behind it two slugs slotted into place. The ship turned into position and the rails stared to glow faintly lighter as the current increased in the coiled capacitor charges above it.

"Fire when a target is locked." Angelus ordered.

"Firing!" Tom called, just before the whole ship darkened, and three massive jolts threw the crew unexpectedly off their feet.

"Holy . . ." Steve Started, before turning his attention to tracking the smaller ships.

The MAC rounds paced towards their target, with a deadly accuracy. The target had a very bloated appearance and was tainted green and turquoise all over its hull. The first shell erupted on the external oval shield of the ship. The plasma explosion caused the shield to be visibly blasted away from the ship as the proton particles making up the shield were repelled away by the electromagnetic forces created. The second shell was deflected by this small wave of protons and glanced the side of the ship; a large red-white gash to appear in the side of the hull with small trails of venting air escaping through small breaches. The third shell hit it near the forward end of the ship, smashing the spherical area into pieces, cutting right through the ship and passing out through the other side, splitting it into two pieces, the smaller piece spiralling away from the main hull. A few seconds passed before the whole ship exploded in a ball of blue and white plasma.

"That's a hit sir!" Tom Shouted, the crew admiring the spectacle of its first kill.

"Smaller vessels are approaching from the flanks, sir. Advise we launch our bombers." Steve tapped in co-ordinates in the computer to relay them.

"Cortana, remote control some Broadswords and target the small craft to our portside." Cortana nodded and started to dry out the airlocks.

C-807 class Broadsword tactical strike craft was a new addition to the UNSC arsenal implemented only six months ago. They were of a similar size to the long sword but were much wider, and instead of a single fin stretching out of the back, it had two coming from either side of the wider fuselage. The entry ramp was mounted at the back between these two fins saving critical time in the launching of the fighters if they were manned. Its cockpit was wider and contained a three man crew instead of the longswords pair. The rear cargo hold was wide enough to hold a warthog for the crew to use on a planetary mission. Above the rear door are two extra engines, the same ones used in longswords to provide the extra thrust for its weight. These engines were mounted into the edges and the air intakes for atmospheric cooling stretched towards the cockpit. It had the four standard engines of the longsword but on the sides were mounted swivelling fins like on a pelican for a more secure hovering capability. It could be mounted with standard longsword armament but its three new systems were the most popular choices.

Its primary weapon was two miniature MAC cannons, one under-slung on each wing between the engine and fuselage with similar charging capabilities as the warthog. They fired 235mm shells at supersonic velocities towards the enemy. Its secondary system was the most useful on ground missions; two dual 33mm Gatling guns on a rotating platform underneath the tips of the wings and a single double barrelled 88mm Autocannon underneath the cockpit nose. Its third optional was removing the secondary system and putting twelve archer missiles onto the undersides of the wing. They can either be used for bombing missions on the ground or for tactical striking in space.

Four squadrons of three launched from the side hangar and turned towards the approaching threats.

"Admiral, squadrons one and two are en route to the portside hostile. The other two are engaging the one at starboard."

"_Relentless_, What is your status?" Angelus asked

"Three ships have entered close proximity and we have having difficulty tracking them. Drones have been launched to interce-" A fizz of static filled the channel. "-abled. The drone bay is gone, they hit the primary power coupling and we cannot launch any drones!"

"Start to orbit the _Relentless_ Cortana. Track those ships with the 65mm's and try to do some damage."

The _Serenity _slowly arced towards the _Relentless_. The two larger threats following the _Serenity_ were nearly in weapons fire range but they were heading through the asteroid field trying to gain cover.

"Sir, Cortana has disabled the 65mm's and transferred their power to the engines." Angelus looked across to Cortana, floating above the platform and whispered to himself.

"Cortana, what are you doing this time." He sighed. "Help Cortana in any way you can. Don't interfere with here systems."

"She is moving the fields towards the small hostile's sir, and has loaded the MAC cannon with 3 small slug rounds." The serenity stopped with its side facing the _Relentless_. The three craft slowed down to a halt and were pulled away from the ally. Suddenly, the power from lights and engines surged as the magnetic fields pulled two of the small ships towards the _Serenity_. They gained more speed as they travelled.

"She is pulling them away from the Relentless, sir!" Tom said.

The small craft were unable to take the stain from the concentrated fields and hurtled towards the _Serenity._

"They are on a collision course sir!" Tom tapped several buttons on his panel. "She's locked me out of the system. Attempting to override." Tom tapped more furiously until Angelus laid his hand on his shoulder.

"Let's see what she is up to." He said in a calm voice, before he took a look at the course they were travelling in. Suddenly the ship rocked and started to turn. The manoeuvring thrusters had activated and were spinning the ship. The two craft sped metres away from the _Serenity _and entered the asteroid field. The first hit an asteroid sending it into a spin spewing gas everywhere. The second plummeted through the field and hit the portside threat sending them both into spins, the smaller craft exploding with the impact. The fighter carrier started to counter the spin, remaining intact but was slowing down. The third had been pulled in front of the _Serenity_ which was now facing the asteroid field. Three familiar jolts shook the ship. The craft being held in front exploded dramatically as the MAC cannon rounds tore through it like paper. They continued on into the asteroid field hitting asteroids as they went, showering the two remaining ships with debris.

"They are fleeing!" Steve said. Cortana slowly landed back on her pad and put her hands on her hips, before blowing her hair out of her face. She sighed loudly.

"Well, that went better than expected!" She turned to look at the bridge crew smiling. Angelus just had a chance to open his mouth when the lights and computers on the bridge died, and the engine stopped humming in the background."

"Ah, maybe 400 percent was a bit too much."


	6. Chapter 6, Curious Nature

_Y-2NAO, Azuris Quadrant, 1230_

_Sustained overcharge damage,_

_Rebooting subsystems_

"I think I've got it!" Sam called, scrambling over his damage control panels which were showing no lights or any output signals. Even the emergency lighting had stopped working, as the backup generator had been reshaped by the EM pulse the engines released after narrowly avoiding a meltdown. Sam flicked a row of switches and the lights blinked on. "Aha! It was the main delay circuit. Totally fried I think." He started to peel back a panel from the wall, gaining an electric shock in the process.

"Try to be careful." Cortana sighed, looking at the nails of her curled hand.

"Cortana, what _exactly_ did you do too cause this?" Keyes asked. She took her attention off her nails and looked at Angelus.

"I only overloaded the main power couplings." She still had her hand curled in front of her. "How else was I supposed to magnify the fields at range?"

"You just don't. Dammed!" Sam replied, his head now in the hole with the occasional spark jumping inside it too.

"Cortana, you over-clocked the engines by 400 percent!" Cortana shrugged but realised that maybe she should have taken human-factor into her calculations. "That could have been another Nova bomb going off!" Sam swore in the background as he received another shock.

"I think I got those comms back now online, Sir. Try them out." Sam emerged from his hole and replaced the panel. Keyes touched the wall panel with his fingers.

"Engine room, do you copy? What is your status?" Keyes let go of the panel and looked out the main view screen which was now back online. He could see the _Relentless_, motionless in front of the _Serenity_. The comms sparked to life and the sound of a siren could be heard.

"Engine room here. We have a coolant leak in the second reactor and are preparing to dump reactants into storage cells for repair."

"Can we get engine power?" Keyes replied.

"Yes, but we need to dump before we start otherwise we risk another overload."

"Darren, Sam here, try reversing the flow of the coolant and passing the second reactants through the secondary flow pipe. That should allow us power to the minor engines and the sub-light systems."

"We can try, but coolant is being a pain to control." Darren sighed

"Do your best." Keyes replied, before cutting the comms to the engine room.

"Sir, Incoming transmission from the _Relentless_." Cortana said

"Patch it through." Static was heard and the voice of Captain Scyther was heard.

"We thank you for your help, Angelus. However, it looks like you are in need of help yourself. Can we be of any assistance?"

"We overloaded our engines, but we are about to receive a small power output shortly. We request co-ordinates for a safer area to start our repairs. Can you comply with this?"

"We can indeed. I will upload some co-ordinated to you lovely AI over there and we will start ahead of you to report your upcoming arrival." Cortana smiled at the complement, took the sets of triangulation co-ordinates and handed them over to Jane.

"Sir. The exit destination is approximately two minutes away at trans-light speed." Jane told angelus.

"Do we have enough power to reach it?" Keyes asked.

"Enough to get us there, but not back." Cortana replied. "I'll start up the jump engines in thirty seconds." Angelus watched as the Relentless lined up with its destination, and started dramatically accelerating until it was out of sight.

"Line us up for the exit jump, and prepare longsword and broadsword fighters for launch. Let's be ready just in case." Angelus looked across, out of the main screen. He could see the outskirts of the asteroid field, broken up in several places as it orbited the sun. This area seemed to be a small piece with fewer asteroids in the area. There was still some debris floating close by from the destruction of the earlier attackers, slowly spinning in random directions.

"Ship is about to jump, sir." Cortana said. "We have minimal power, and expect to loose most system when we exit."

"Good, Cortana." He looked across to her memory platform, containing the drives that made Cortana her. Cortana caught his glance.

"I'm sorry for earlier, Angelus. I wasn't intending to endanger the crew, merely testing out the ships capabilities." She looked at the Admiral worriedly during a short pause of speech. "Have you found any AI relaxation software?" Cortana asked. Keyes smirked, and looked back at her.

"Cortana, I will never intend to loose you. I'm just worried, thinking about what is going to happen next." The ship rocked slightly as the jump drives engaged. "We have no idea where we are, and have met a race who we are now allied to, even though we do not know where we are." Suddenly, Angelus remembered the meeting in the tunnel with Captain Scyther. "Were you listening in on the meeting with Captain Scyther earlier?" Keyes eyes jolted around, trying to remember what he said.

"I'm sorry, but yes, I was." Cortana looked at her feet and clasped her hands together.

"Can you play back the feed, from the point of our introductions?" Cortana nodded and pointed at a small monitor. Angelus walked towards it. The monitor changed and then he was watching himself from behind, his hands moving in co-ordination with his speaking.

". . . cruiser, representing the pride of Earth, our home planet." Angelus said in the video feed.

"Cortana, zoom in on Sycther." He watched the captain's expressions as he heard 'Earth'. His hands stopped moving, and his eyes widened and fixed in position, staring back at Angelus. He turned his head slightly, as if he misheard him. Keyes repeated 'Earth' and the captain froze. Then the monitor turned off.

"That was as far as I recorded. I'm afraid the alert made me shift my programming around a bit." Keyes was looking at the screen, confused.

"Did you see how he acted when I mentioned Earth?" Cortana nodded and began to think. "He seemed to recognise it."

"He was definitely human." Cortana added "And there is no past record of a colony, besides, we were the first to try out this IJD technology." Cortana looked at Angelus., her eyelids closed and her hand on her forehead. "There is nothing I can find."

"I guess we will find out soo-" Angelus noticed Cortana had stopped what she was doing, and was staring into his eyes, her code totally still. "What is it?"

"It can't be. . ." She said. The monitor blinked on and Cortana turned towards the monitor. She skipped to when the Captain was gawping at the Admiral, and zoomed in on his face.

"What are you doing?" Angelus asked. "What have you thought?"

"I'm running a biometrics scan on Sycther." Cortana used her digital enhancement technology on the still frame and his head slowly cleared, and become more pronounced. Then, a mass of green lines descended on his face, measuring many attributes. Cortana gasped.

"This man is 100 percent human." She looked back at Angelus. "Not only that, he carries the same blood pressure as a man from earth, the same oxygen count, the same eye alignment, the same head shape, the same eye colour, the same tongue, the same middle finger, the same everything." Cortana looked shocked. "This man was from earth, Angelus, and I have no doubt about it."

"But this isn't a registered system. We do not even know where we are, even by astrometric standards, meaning we are not in our home galaxy. No-one has travelled this far in history! What are you saying Cortana?" Angelus was looking worried. Cortana was biting her lip. The ship rocked as it exited from the short jump.

"I think we have travelled forwards in time." For the second time, the bridge was emerged in darkness.


	7. Chapter 7, Feared Realisation

_Y-2NAO, Azuris Quadrant, 1236 – Day 1_

_Escorted to safe location_

_Initiating Repairs_

"How many crew members do we have aboard this ship, Cortana?" Keyes asked

"Approximately... 612 crew, 112 pilots and 1850 marines sir."

"And how in hells name am I supposed to tell these well trained and _sane_ humans that we've travelled back in time?"

"Forwards in time, actually, and that's up to you." Cortana replied, imitating a shrug. She looked at her nails and her attention momentarily diverted itself to the translucent purple surfaces. "Just remember, not so long ago, people thought space travel was a myth."

"Cortana!" Keyes snapped at her. She slowly glanced up and sighed

"Fine! You've got me. I'll get some of the techs to look over my calculations – as if I couldn't manage them myself – and make sure that the crew will understand the situation. As if _you_ couldn't do that yourself." Cortana vanished again.

"Sam!" Angelus turned towards Sam, who had his upper body in another side panel.

"Aye sir?" the muffled voice answered. Keyes realised he had nothing at all to say to him.

"Get these dammed lights on!" Keyes shuffled over to his control panel and looked down at his chair. It still had his sidearm on it, and for the first time in his military career, he removed the weapon and sat in the chair. He leant back and closed his eyes and started to think about home. He remembered that all to well, as he imagined himself looking out through those second story windows onto his garden at evening, watching his family dancing and his wife was singing away near the grass bank. Then that memory was pulled away from his head as he recalled the moment that caused his family to be taken from him.

* * *

"Sir!" Cortana shouted at him, leaning towards him

"Wh- What? What!" Keyes' focus quickly snapped back and he stood up from his chair.

"The Techs have agreed with my conclusion. The _Relentless_ has also looked at our theories but have not responded yet. They are currently docked with the station and are analysing our data."

"Wai- _Relentless? _Station, what station? Wha-" Cortana smiled and looked at her feet

"You've been asleep sir, for six hours now." Angelus quickly looked at his watch and was surprised to see six hours had passed. He also noticed that all the lights were on, and could feel the faint rumbling of the primary engines.

"Well, I only... I... you've got a lot done haven't you?" He looked at the control panels beside him and brought up the ship status from tactical control. All the lights were green, and on closer inspection, the engines were at fully operational order, including the coolant pipes and main power consoles.

"Yes, we have. This ship was designed to be this easy to maintain for this mission. All we needed was to change a few parts here and there and we were done." Cortana bit her lip and smiled at Angelus again. He noticed and turned towards her

"Now what are you smirking at?"

"I was right about these 'humans' we encountered. To them, Earth is a myth; I secretly hacked into their history logs and found a load of info. Something happened a long time ago and now they are here. I am still not sure where here exactly is yet, but I definitely know that were not in the Milky Way; not even in Andromeda. Apparently they are split into four factions because of Earth and how the races chose their homes a long time ago. I do not know the full details, you can ask them yourself, but these ones call themselves the 'Amarr'. Now, they are very religious and have high standards expected from us." She paused. "You know how in movies, a guy can be seen as a god by other people for doing something?" Angelus frowned but nodded gently "Well, they have taken up the opinion that we are 'messengers from Earth' and are... well, to blindly put it... worshiping us." Angelus' eyes widened

"Worshipping." He repeated. "Us." He pointed at himself. Cortana nodded and showed him a beginning of a recent welcoming message. It began 'Welcome, Prophets of Earth...'

"Well, we had better make sure we keep those standards up." Keyes joked. Cortana's face turned serious.

"There is... one more thing." Cortana tried to think how to phrase her words. "We could be the cause for one of the largest civil wars ever to break out in this region. Captain Scyther pleaded that we do not reveal our true backgrounds, as the original cause for the four factions to split was the loss of a connection between them and Earth." This jogged the Admirals mind

"I understand. Do you know how they got here originally?" Cortana smiled

"Yes, I do. A wormhole in the year 7987 opened near the solar system and colonists went through."

"But that's eons ahead; surely they must have advanced more than this?" Keyes questioned

"About seven years after our departure date, something happened which killed all life on Earth – only those who were on the moon base survived and it took a whole millennia to reinvent history." Cortana shrugged and tried to interpret Keyes blank look, he just seemed to be staring through her. "Admiral?" She waved her hand in front of him.

"Yes... thank you Cortana. I..." He paused briefly "The whole crew needs to be addressed about our situation shortly. Could you organise this please?" He glanced across to look at the _Relentless_ through the main window.

"Of course, sir" She shimmered away. Angelus leant against the wall, still in shock about what he just heard. Earth is going to be virtually destroyed? How? After so many years of war with the covenant, and finally winning against these impossible odds for survival, Earth is still going to get wiped out? He shook his head to try and clear the thoughts accumulating in his head and walked around the corner, almost bumping into Jane.

"Ah, Admiral. I've got Scyther on the comms for you." Keyes nodded and went to press the switch to activate the microphone when Jane stopped him and grabbed his hand.

"I heard what Cortana said to you, sir." She stopped a moment "What are we going to do?" The Admiral turned to face her

"We will work that out after we have sorted our mess up. Thank you, and please don't tell any members of the crew, the morale will plummet and now is not the time for people to start worrying." Keyes removed her arm.

"But with all due respect sir, everyone has a right to know this." Jane replied

"Jane, we don't even know if all these are facts. First we need to start to pull some strings together and get over fears and fiction first. We need to get our bearings and I promise you, I will keep the crew informed when we separate those facts from fiction." Jane nodded understandingly. "You will have also heard that I will address the crew shortly. If you don't mind, you can go and help Cortana out."

"Yes sir!" She saluted, and walked briskly out of the bridge, leaving the Admiral alone. He turned back towards the comms unit and pressed the switch.

"Hello Captain, this is Keyes here." Angelus started to walk around the bridge

"Greeting, Angelus. I hear you are close to being fully operational?"

"Yes, we have been working hard to complete repairs."

"That is good to hear. I would like some time to meet you, this time, without interruptions. I feel we have a lot to talk about."

"Of course. I will be addressing my crew shortly; it would be a pleasure if you could join us." Cortana appeared quietly in the corner, and waited for him to finish.

"When would you wish for me to arrive?" Scyther responded. Cortana mouthed a few words and help up a finger.

"Our brief is scheduled to start in one hour, if you wouldn't mind arriving before then. I will inform the crew of your arrival."

"That will be most convenient. I will depart immediately. Goodbye, Angelus." The comms died and Keyes turned towards Cortana.

"That guy gives me the creeps" Cortana said as she folded her arms. "One hour to prepare your speech, Sir."

"Yes. I don't know what to say."

"For a start you could explain all these weird happenings, you becoming Admiral and suddenly a new bridge crew is made." Cortana started to count with her fingers. Keyes looked down at the walls, realising that some of the panels were still scorched from the bomb that Captain Morse set off not long ago.

"Yes, thank you. Inform me as soon as Scyther is on a docking course with the ship. I want to meet him personally." Cortana nodded and disappeared. Keyes briefly looked out of the front window before walking out of the bridge towards his quarters.


	8. Chapter 8, Welcomed Arrival

_Authors Note: There is not much in this chapter – I thought I should give you a little taster after my ... extended break for you to catch up on the progress. If I stick with my plans, this story is about to get a lot more interesting. Hope you enjoy._

_---------------------------------------_

_Y-2NAO, Azuris Quadrant, 1851 – Day 1_

_Brief Commencing at 1900_

_Scyther on docking course_

"Sir, his shuttle is coming about our ship and will be touching down in about three minutes." Cortana looked stressed, but noticed Keyes was in worse shape. "Are you sure you're alright Angelus?" Keyes was standing in his old quarters next to the sink splashing water over his face.

"I'm fine for the moment, Cortana. You gave me a bit of a shock not long ago." Cortana immediately reacted by moving her hands to the side of her face.

"Oh! I'm sorry Angelus. I didn't realise that it would get to you this much!" Cortana felt helpless standing on her platform and she fidgeted from foot to foot. "Do you want me to-"

"No, no. I'll meet with him. You come along with me though; I would appreciate the friendly company." Keyes looked around

"I was going to say do you want me to get you some fresh towels?" Cortana broke eye contact and started stroking her hair. Keyes smiled.

"That would be wonderful." He replied. "But these will do for now." He picked up a towel that hung from his bunk and dried his face. Cortana quickly checked how her subroutines were with managing the ships systems while it was idling in space, and noticed the time logs.

"Come on, We'd better hurry up if we are to meet the creepy captain." Cortana said and disappeared.

The shuttle was about the size of a longsword but coated in the same golden armour as the _Relentless_ and was of the sleek and elegant design – obviously the interior was made for comfort and enjoyment rather than combat. It touched down with a low pitched drone and fell onto its undercarriage softly. The bright blue engines ceased and an access hatch opened, spurting a small thin platform towards the ground. Captain Scyther ducked under the hatch before it had finished opening, accompanied by two overdressed guards. They stopped at the top of the ramp and took a look around the hangar bay.

Keyes pulled up next to the platform driving his personal warthog, with a single marine on the Chaingun and Cortana lying down on a hologram platform above the arm rests. He turned off the engine and hopped out of the driver's seat. He shuffled around to the front and leant against the winch, and looked across to the captain.

"Welcome aboard captain." Keyes said. He walked towards the ramp.

"It is good to see you again, Admiral Keyes. This is quite a marvel of engineering I see around here." He stepped off the ramp and approached the warthog. His hand spread over its front armour.

"Hop on in. I hope you won't mind travelling on your own." Angelus walked around to the driver's seat and jumped in. Scyther looked at his guards and nodded his head. They both headed back up the ramp. He climbed in the side seat and looked around the inside of the vehicle.

"I shall be fine on my own. I believe you can be trusted." He looked around the cabin and frowned. This is a very intriguing vehicle. What is its purpose?" Keyes hovered his hand over the ignition and responded

"We call this the Warthog." He spun the key and its Hydrogen Fuel engine roared into life. As soon as he revved the engine, he floored the accelerator, sweeping around the hanger deck in a tail frenzy slide before aligning with the access hatch and stopping. "I forgot to introduce you to Cortana here, our ships AI." He looked at Cortana and she nodded kindly at the Captain.

"The way he drives, you'd better hold on." She responded, and looked towards a smiling Keyes; Captain Scyther revealed a small, nervous smile. Keyes floored the accelerator once again and the wheels span lifting the front end off the deck slightly. The warthog ramped the opening of the access hatch and screeched around the corner, its engine still roaring loudly.

"Sir, you've got three minutes before the brief is due to start." Cortana shouted over the noise of the engine. "I suggest you head through access point 4, and re-route around the back of the armoury and leave the Hog parked next to hatch 4B." She disappeared and replaced her hologram with a rotating 3D image of the route she plotted.

"Thank you Cortana." Keyes turned off the raised platform onto a lowly-lit roofed channel area which slowly swept off to the left into a small tunnel.

"If I may ask," Scyther started, gripping his seat tightly "Would you care to show me some of your ship's equipment?" He adjusted his position on the seat and gasped as the warthog took off the ground again. "I was extremely impressed at your main weapons capabilities. The amount of power used must have been phenomenal."

"Yes it was. We can unload our whole capacitor in one firing sequence if we need to" Cortana replied. "Or four times that." Cortana coughed and shot a quick look at Angelus.

"We will show you what we can after the briefing." Keyes responded. "There is a lot that has gone into the ship and it really does pack a punch when it needs to."

"Yes, so I saw." Scyther responded with a half hearted laugh. "There is some other news I would like to speak to you about unofficially too." He looked across to Keyes. "I'm sure you will understand what I mean." Angelus nodded, suddenly reminded of a question.

"How is it that you are not too concerned about Earth yourself?" Keyes mentioned, as he veered off the main shaft into a slightly larger shaft with pillars dotting along the middle.

"Oh forgive the misinterpretation, but I am. However, I.... I am not as religious as my fellow comrades. I have... close relations to the empires front and need to be aware of different principles, in order to... understand our allies and enemies. Our people are fanatical believers of our beliefs and culture, and more important, our Prophecies. You are a fulfilment of one of these and would easily lead to you being a target of the enemy." He took a pause.

"Why would that make us a target?" Angelus asked.

"Because you're sudden arrival is what we have both hoped and prayed for! If the enemy succeeds in somehow capturing... or even destroying you, our faith will be shattered. While our faith is our shield, it can also be our demise." Angelus nodded understandingly.

"We'll I will order a command on our crew to hush up. If you decide to take a note in the briefing, then you will also find out that our side is also in a midst of confusion. You see, us being here was an accident." Keyes brought the warthog to stop just outside a large hatch with "4B" written across the doors.

"We've arrived it seems, and intact for a change." Cortana said, with a surprised tone. "If you wouldn't mind admiral, I would like to run a few diagnostics with you in private." She winked at Keyes and waited for a response.

"Of course, Cortana." He looked back at the marine who was still on the Chaingun. "Corporal, please would you assist our guest to the conference room? Give him a seat on the main podium."

"Aye sir!" The marine called, and jumped to the ground. "I will lead you now, Sir." Scyther climbed out of the hog and staggered a few steps, before readjusting his balance and followed the Marine through the doors.

"Diagnostics, horse crap." Angelus said immediately

"You read me like a book. Do you really think we should be sharing our whips capabilities with Scyther? I mean he may look like a cute bunny rabbit but he's a Captain. That means someone else gives him orders. You saw how edgy he was when he got out of his shuttle. I don't trust him."

"Same here Cortana. But if we lock doors for him, he could do the same thing to us." Cortana nodded. "I'll give him a class C clearance. That will allow him most information. I'm sure he can understand why some aspects aren't given." She closed her eyes. "They have arrived. Let's go and meet them." Cortana vanished from the holopad, leaving Keyes alone.

"God, I hope I know what I'm doing..."


End file.
